


The Trainee's Guardian (Undertale)

by FishMum



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: A little angst, Adoption, Child Undyne, Dadgore, Fluff, Gen, dad and daughter stuff, fishy toddler, she cute but annoying
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-05
Updated: 2018-08-24
Packaged: 2019-04-18 18:21:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 12,841
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14219010
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FishMum/pseuds/FishMum
Summary: My interpretation of Undyne and Asgore's meeting and father/daughter relationship.Undyne thinks that she can overthrow the king with ease, but when "defeated" by emotion, said king offers the chance of a lifetime to her. Her very own training! Soon enough though, Asgore becomes suspicious of the girl's origins, but is also becoming awfully attached to the cute child.





	1. Bellicose

**Author's Note:**

> If you also love a father/daughter dynamic between Asgore and Undyne, you're in luck, cause I post a LOT of that!

An annoyed child trudged through the calm path of Waterfall. The water gleamed from gentle glowing blue particles, it rippled as each drop fell into the lake from the caverns above. 

The rather small fish girl- or "sea monster" as she proclaimed -kicked each puddle she came across, the water droplets splashing against her cyan colored scales. Even though she caused this to happen, she would get annoyed at the puddle. How odd she was, everyone- especially the residents of Waterfall -thought. She was well-known as the hotheaded child; who went around picking fights. Her whereabouts when she wasn't attempting to "protect" Waterfall were unknown, as well as her origins. No one bothered to question so.

Shoulder lengthened bright red hair in a messy knot; was loosely hung on her head. Dashing yellow sclera and a thin pupil, including sharp teeth of the same color. As well as denim overalls that hung loosely on her petite body. Not the most apropos of appearances, but she tried her best to maintain herself.

She took cautious steps in a caliginous cavern, the room where lanterns darken. The coruscate of hovering particles made the room particularly beautiful. The young girl tapped each lantern as she passed, by now she had memorized the correct path to take. 

This girl was a determined one, telling all that she wanted to be a hero when older. She certainly was not a dilettante when it came to fighting. Though she did give off an intimidating feel, she was surprisingly; a kind-hearted monster. She was fond of finding monsters to help, or "save". There were monsters who appreciated her hero play, she would help them with their chores. She claimed that even the smallest bit of help made a big difference, and hoped to achieve something big. This butterfly effect she mentioned to all, it was true in some cases. Adults couldn't help but admire her hope and determination, while children her age and older thought it was strange.  
She eventually saw the effulgence of Waterfall fade, she was now entering Hotland. 

The heat was overwhelming, beads of sweat automatically formed on her forehead. She ignored the feeling, and proceeded through the scorching flames. She instead thought of how to elicit one of her infamous spears. She heard the crackling of sparks, fire, lava. The sounds were quite euphonious in her opinion. They were calming. 

Euphoria filled within her, she was going to face the greatest challenger of all. All agreed that he yielded great power, yet never used it. 

After cautiously proceeding through Hotland and the Core- she heard that some one had fallen in recently... -she stopped at the castle gates. The guards were nowhere to be seen. They must have had a terrible captain. 

"I'd be a better one!" The girl thought to herself as she entered the gray toned monumental structure. The castle itself; overlooked New Home. The child wondered what a view was possible to see from up in the castle. Curiosity engulfed her; but she stopped herself, she was here for another matter.   
She ran her little hand across the paved gray walls as she walked down a hall, she turned right, only to see quite the impressive view of New Home. It was not as amazing as she sought it out to be, but she kept a positive stance. New Home was rather dull, not many colors were seen.

The girl decided to stop loathing around the view and go on to locate the throne room, as she believed the king would most likely be located there.  
She got to a new room, a sudden burst of colors emerged as she entered, inundated. Many shades of orange and yellow engulfed the great hall. The young monster walked through the hall in caution, a part of her afraid that something, or someone, was there. She sped up her pace, her footsteps grew louder doing so. The sound of her boots against the smooth marble echoed throughout the hall. 

At last she arrived to the other side, though it wasn't the longest hall, her short legs made it feel longer. 

She gingerly made her way to the opening to the throne room. Which the sign on the side specifically said it was, but then again, it was not like she could read it.

She poked her head into the room, there stood, with his back turned, the one and only, King Asgore. A known-to-be dignified, powerful man. Many looked up to him for hope, freedom, and leadership. This little girl however, was quite a braggadocio being. For she wanted to be on top of the king himself. She told herself she would fight him, and succeed.

"King Asgore!!" She shouted threateningly. 

The face of royalty turned around, and studied the girl.   
"Ah, hello there little one... How did you get in here?"

"I challenge you- to a d— duel!!"  
The stutter came out on accident, which annoyed the girl to an extent. It was hard not to feel at least a little intimidated when such a large figure stood in front of her.

"Pardon me?"

"A duel!" She repeated, with no stutter this time. 

"Who are you?...." The King asked her in concern. 

"I am Undyne! And I said that I challenge you to a duel!"   
The name "Undyne" was at least a sobriquet she had adopted.

His majesty thought that this level of alienation was rather strange, especially for a child. He had never seen something such as this before. He assumed something must have been wrong in her household, a child should not have to act with such hostility. Such an allure to fight him was concerning to the king. 

"Now now.. There is no need for a dispute.. Calm down little girl-"

"Fight me, wimp!!" Her alloquy rang loudly. 

"Please listen-" He wearily kept a nonchalant tone. He put his gloved hands- paws? -up in defense. Undyne approached in a seemingly threatening manner. It was hard to tell her intentions, she was a little harmless child after all.

Undyne tried to coax the king into fighting her numerous times, she ignored every one of his questions. Each attempt of hers ended up failing. Naturally, she went for her plan B. To simply attack him until he did the same. 

The little fish charged at him, her arms flailed in every direction possible. They were rather thin, but then again, the girl herself was petite.

The first few times, Asgore dodged her attempted attacks with ease. The young girl would then back up and charge again, determination fueled her actions.  
Undyne ran towards him, and batted his armor repeatedly. She had no meat on her bones, his majesty had been beginning to get concerned.   
"Fight me! Fight me! Fight me! You dumb king!" 

The "dumb king" however, gently lifted up Undyne and spoke as calmly and kindly as possible. 

"Little girl, what did you say your name was again..?" 

"Undyne, and I'm here t' fight you!" 

"I understand that, but may I ask why?"

"FIGHT ME!!" She shouted at him. Her voice cracked out of rage. She seemed upset, as she repeatedly hit his armored chest, her head started to lower. 

"You don't understand! You don't understand! It's all your fault you stupid king-!" Her hands curled into tight fists, but her punches simply deteriorated. By now, light tears ran down her cheeks.   
She eventually stopped her actions and used her hands to wipe her face instead of punch the king and fail.

"It's because of you...... Cause of you........ I hate you.." She muttered repetitively. 

The king allowed her to calm down, wishing he had some sort of tissue or cloth to hand her. Her head continued to face down, her body slumped in disappointment and embarrassment. She had just embarrassed herself by crying in front of his majesty, showing weakness before her opponent. What a foolish mistake.

"I deeply apologize, child.. I do not know what I did, but I'm sorry." The king stated with a very much apologetic tone. 

"Well you should be!" Undyne shouted in reply.

"And I am.. Now please, you should go home, little one..." He told her in concern.

"Ugh, I will! Put me down." She demanded. His majesty did as the girl ordered. He made sure she was set down carefully, so she stood safely amongst the flowers.

Undyne averted her thin pupils away from the king's towering figure. Her head faced downwards, while her eyes now scanned the radiant flowers. She longed to ask about them, but refrained from doing so. She was mad. Though she was not sure why, or at what she was at. At herself, for completely failing her objective? At the king, for not fighting back? She did not know, but she was mad.   
Without a word, she turned around in lone silence and began walking out. 

The king frowned at her disappointment, such a passionate and determined girl did not deserve to fail. He saw how much she longed to succeed, she almost reminded him of his other child.   
She had the same look of hope in her eyes.

"Excuse me..."

Undyne stopped in her tracks, but did not dare to turn around. 

"Would you like to know how to beat me?"

Undyne's eyes widened in curiosity and excitement. She instantly turned around and looked up at the much older monster. Perhaps he would reveal some sort of secret to her? A spell? A tactic? 

The man kneeled down to her, hoping to not intimidate her. Even when on his knees, his figure still towered over her's. 

"I'd like to offer you lessons in combat."  
Undyne stared up at him in surprise. He was saying that after she had discourteously attempted to attack, he wanted to train her to fight?

"You mean.. You want to teach me how to fight?!" Undyne questioned with gleaming eyes.

"Pretty much.. Yes..." He replied.

All of Undyne's rage faded away and was replaced by exhilaration. Her body bounced hyperactively with the corners of her mouth curling into a big grin. 

"Really?! That is so cool Mr. King!" She exclaimed rather loudly. 

"Just Asgore is quite fine.." He coaxed. In all honesty, he was not fond of his people calling him by these royally inducing names. He had always just preferred people to call him by his own name, especially since these days barely anyone used it.

"Okay Mr. Asgore!" Undyne squealed, still visibly excited to have gotten ahold of the king's offer.

"When do we start?!" She added, her excitement did not falter one bit. Hope glimmered in her eyes, when like that, they reminded Asgore of the so-called "stars" in Waterfall.

"Hm.. Let's see, I'm not too busy... How does tomorrow sound?" 

"Tomorrow sounds perfect!"

"Wonderful, Undyne. Now, it is beginning to be late, young one.. It's 9PM. You should return home now... Your parents must certainly be worried, little fishy." He smiled politely and pat her head.

Undyne shuffled her feet, she was about to speak up, but resigned at the last second. Instead she simply nodded in hesitation. Asgore went on and shooed her off, and so she went.   
She seemed as if she knew where she was going, as if she were just anticipating to get home. Yet she had no home, she simply wandered the roads mindlessly, without a thought in the world. Usually she was filled with gloom, this time with enthusiasm. For the king had offered private training. Super secret, one-on-one training.

How cool was that?


	2. The Protégé

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's her first day of training, she expects leactures on epic battles and combat tactics, but Asgore has different plans for her.

Undyne hopped off a worn out mattress that was secluded within the dump, she was engulfed in exhilaration. Today was the first day she would receive personal training from none other then the king himself. She ran to a lake that gleamed as Waterfall's effulgence streaked it's waters. She constantly used this lake as her make-do mirror. Adjusting her hair and ignoring her growling stomach, she made sure she looked somewhat presentable. 

She took the same path as yesterday, through the subdued blue humid caves and lakes of placid waters, and into the scorching lands of roaming lava and heat.  
Eventually arriving at the large grey structure, she made her way into it and located the throne room once again. Just as before, she ran through the long hallway of orange and yellow. The pillars glinted with a burnish, as though someone had polished them recently.  
She slowed her pace as she approached the large entrance to the throne room. With slight apprehension, she entered the room. Golden flowers stood as far as the eye could see, vines that concealed parts of the ceiling and walls, it was as if the sight had been withdrawn from a fairytale.

"Do you like them?" The king questioned Undyne, who had been staring at the clinquant flora for a while. 

"Huh-?" The child replied mindlessly. She glanced up at the much bigger figure, who watched her with a kind smile. His head motioned towards the flowers.

"Oh Uhm- Yes sir!" She answered in a nervous delay. "Did you... Did you grow all of this by yourself, sir?" 

"Yes, mostly. These flowers are quite strange though, they spread quickly. It's as if they have a mind of their own sometimes..." The king answered as his eyes lowered to look at his flora.

"Are they haunted?!" Undyne asked him. The king chuckled in response.  
"Perhaps they are, maybe I should be more careful?"

Undyne nodded and looked up at him. "Some people say that this whole castle's haunted-! Do you think that's true?" She asked since she had the chance to talk to the owner of the castle himself.

"Well..." Asgore thought of the two contained human souls that sat in the basement. He thought of strange whispers he had heard and the disfigured shadows that sometimes appeared in the corners of his vision. "It's a secret." He smiled mischievously, but frowned on the inside. This child didn't know what he had truly done. These specters haunted him, not the castle.

"Aww, okay sir!" She replied as she took another look at the flowers.

"Just Asgore, please.." He replied politely, once again bothered by the formal address. 

Undyne nodded and turned her head to him with wide eyes. "When do we start training Mr. Asgore?!" She questioned him eagerly. Her petite body hopped up and down, yet she was wary of the flowers beneath her.

"Soon enough.. I just have a few questions that I need you to answer." Asgore replied in the kindest tone he could possibly muster, in fear of frightening her off.  
Undyne hesitantly nodded her head in acceptance, and awaited his questions.

"First of all, do your parents know you're here?" 

Undyne took a moment of thought, then slowly nodded in a somewhat nervous disposition. "Yes sir-"

"Very good, and where do you live?"

Undyne placed her hands behind her back as her fingers fidgeted. "In Waterfall, uh... Next to the dump-"

Asgore nodded, mentally noting the information. "And the most important question, why DO you want to learn combat?"

Undyne's yellow sclera suddenly lit up as her face and body posture showed great enthusiasm. 

"That's easy! When I grow up I want to be in the Royal Guard! I wanna help protect the underground and get human souls to set everyone free and give them hope, just like you!"  
The last sentence almost hurt the king, he did not want anyone to be like him, making countless mistakes that only put people in danger, or anyone to participate in such violent crimes. Such a young child as well, surely something in her life had influenced such a motive.

"I see... As valid as your reason is, I believe you still aren't ready."

Undyne's fins dropped to their sides as her face became angry. "What?! Why not?!"

"Calm down please.. I simply.. Believe that..........." He trailed off, not knowing how to politely crush the child's biggest dreams. "..you need more.... Mental training.." He said, failing at shutting down her plans.

"Mental training?? What does THAT mean?" She asked in confusion.

"It means that we must prepare your brain before your body—"

"What?! That just sounds stupid!" She cut him off and crossed her arms in indignation. 

"Well, that is a requirement... So I suppose if you don't want to be in the Royal Guard...."

"No no no-! I do! I do wanna be in the Royal Guard!" She frantically stated.  
Asgore raised an eyebrow at her with a cheeky smile.

Undyne huffed in annoyance. "Fine, I'll do your stupid brain training.."

"Excellent! Come along then.." He said as he led the girl to a hallway in the castle.

"So why exactly do I need this training??" She questioned the king.

"That's a great question, Undyne. You see, being in the Guard is not an easy job. They see things that many other people do not. Many times you have to be focused, on a task, person, no matter.. That is why you must teach your brain to function in a stable mentality."  
Undyne nodded a little and looked up at him as she followed, she held the end of his cape to catch up to the tall figure. "How do we do that?"

"Well, different things work for different people. But I believe the most effective way for you may just be through something simple and delicate like... music."

"Music??" Undyne questioned in confusion.

"Do you like music?" The king asked as he turned right to a smaller corridor. 

"Well... Uh, yeah..." The girl replied.

"Then I believe that a little of this can help you." 

"Help me? Help me with what?" She asked, slightly sternly.

"Ah... Well, I've noticed that you are very... How shall we call it... Hot-headed..? You must be calm and collected to use your magic and properly learn the steps." Asgore replied in the kindest way possible.

Undyne crossed her arms and grumbled complaints under her breath. 

"Pardon?" Asgore questioned her.

"Nothing-! I mean- Yes sir-! I mean Asgore-!" She replied with a nervous grin. "So what kind of music?" She asked, trying to ignore the fact that she would be manufacturing music and not performing combat. 

"Ah, well, I have an instrument that isn't too difficult once you get used to it..." He answered as his hand pushed open a door that led to a seemingly abandoned room. A piano stood in the middle, surrounded by old boxes. They seemed like they hadn't been opened in decades.

"A piano?" Undyne questioned as she ran past Asgore and hopped onto the velvet cushion of the piano stool. "This thing is so big! And super old!" She exclaimed, surprisingly excited.

"Quite like myself, no?" Asgore joked as he made his way to the instrument. Undyne giggled at his self-deprecating joke.

"Teach me!!" Undyne demanded as the goat monster stood near the piano. 

"Golly, you're suddenly excited by this?" Asgore questioned her as he raised an eyebrow.

Undyne nodded ardently. "It's gonna help me get into the guard! Right?!"  
Asgore smiled at her enthusiasm and positivity as he watched the child's legs dangle, her petite fingers ran over the dusty; yet smooth surface of the piano. "Indeed..."

The piano lesson began, only the soft voice of the king and light piano key taps to be heard.


	3. A Trainee's Guardian

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asgore learns the truth about Undyne's situation and decides to take her in for while, lest until he finds a suitable place to put her in.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story was origianlly gonna be a trilogy, but I decided to make it a full-blown chapter story, since I don't think it'd be suitable to mash up all the ideas I had into just 3 chapters.  
> Anyways, enjoy this chapter!

The two had developed a system between them, at noon they'd meet in the king's garden and train for a good two or three hours. Two times a week quickly became four, due to Undyne's enthusiasm and impatience. As well as Asgore's inability to say no to such a determined child.  
The first two days of the week would be piano lessons, and the other two would be combat training. Asgore was correct on the musical training, it did help Undyne concentrate better as time went by. Undyne actually started to like the instrument itself, and insisted that Asgore should continue to teach her it for fun.

They were nearing the three month mark of their regular meetings. Asgore sat on the throne and waited patiently for the young trainee. He was thinking deeply about something, something that was odd of her.  
Earlier that day he had been wandering the paths of Hotland, greeting citizens and chatting. He remembered seeing the Underground's younger citizens making their way to school. That's when realization struck him. Undyne was seven, old enough to be in the first or second grade. Their training sessions took place during school hours, so... 

Did Undyne even go to school?

The question lingered in his mind as he watched the young girl enter the room.

"Hi Asgore!!" She exclaimed loudly and excitedly, she was always extra excited on combat training days.

"Hello there, Undyne. I assume you've been well?"   
Undyne nodded her head in response, she rocked back and forth on her heels, impatiently waiting for the session to begin.

"Listen, before we start there are some things I need to ask you. You have to be completely honest with me, okay?" Asgore spoke calmly and affectionately.

Undyne's rocking stopped, she got an anxious feeling in her stomach but nodded at him. 

"First things first, DO your parents really know of our meetings?" He asked, getting reminded of the numerous excuses Undyne told him when he attempted to meet her legal guardians.

"Yeah-!" She answered.

"Why is it you don't go to school, then?" He questioned.

Undyne's eyes shot open and looked towards every direction, besides Asgore's. She had never thought of an answer to that question. "Um.. Uh..."

Asgore walked over to her and kneeled down, much like he did during their first meeting.   
"Undyne, can your parents... not afford it-?"

She shook her head slightly. "No, no—! It's not that—"

"Then what is it? Can't I simply speak to them?"

"They're just busy, it's nothing-" She lied to his face, Asgore saw through the lies this time.

"Undyne. You have to tell me the truth, if I don't have a guardian's permission then we cannot continue these lessons."

Undyne's head lowered in fright, not liking his sudden strict tone. She was so used to his delicate voice that guided her. She simply shook her head.  
"What is it, Undyne?"

Her head lowered even more, her eyes stared at the flowers beneath her feet. Her body shook ever-so-slightly as she struggled to keep her eyes dry. She felt weak. She felt so small. "I don't....." Her voice wavered and trailed off. She was unable to complete the sentence that she so longed to say months ago.

"Don't what?.. You need to tell me, otherwise I cannot help you." Asgore spoke quietly and gently again, hoping to sooth her fear.

"I don't have any."

The king stared at the young child in front of him. His eyes flew from her skinny bones to her dirt covered face, he suddenly harshly questioned himself how he hadn't seen the signs of this possibility.

"You don't have any parents..?" He repeated after her in a questioning manner.

Undyne simply nodded her head and avoided all eye contact, her fingers dug into her arm as she began to pick on her scales.   
Asgore moved her hand away and held it in his own. "Don't do that, it'll blister..."

Undyne walked towards him and simply laid her head on his stomach, silently begging for comfort from the old goof.  
He answered her silent wishes and sat in the flowers, allowing her to sit on his knee and bury her face into his royal robes.

"I'm sorry for lying." Undyne uttered in an apologetic tone, voice muffled by the fabric.

"It's alright, I understand why you would... But you should have said so earlier... We could have done something..."

Undyne nodded her head then looked up at the large figure. "What are you gonna do with me then-?" She asked.

Asgore scratched his beard as he thought about just that. As far as his knowledge on his kingdom outstretched, orphans weren't the most common. He sure hoped not, at least.  
"That is a good question.. Well, I suppose I'll have to try and get some information on you. Until then..." He set his hand on her shoulder. "You'll be staying with me."

Undyne sat up straight with bright wide eyes. "Really-? With YOU?-" She asked in bewilderment.

"Is.. That an issue?" He asked somewhat nervously.

"No-! It's not but uh-! You're the king—" She began.

"So... Simply because I'm the king I'm not allowed to care for my people and take good care of one of them? My my, I'm offended, I suppose you don't want to stay with me then.." He replied in a joking tone; with intention to cheer her up.

Undyne giggled a little. "Awe, don't say that-! And when you put like that... I guess it makes sense-!"

"Quite so." He smiled a gentle smile at her. "I'll fix up a temporary room for you, come along." He stated and began to lead her to his house. Undyne caught up to him and held his hand, which slightly took Asgore by surprise. He glanced down at her, then smiled softly. Undyne smiled back.

His smile was a true one this time, there was a familiar feeling that had arisen to his chest. It was the feeling of caring for something, someone. The feeling of loving something and connecting to it, making sure that nothing would ever hurt it. He had always had the habit of getting attached to things easily, especially when it came to children. It was as if they were his weakness.  
It was almost funny how such a silly little kid could make her way into the king's heart so easily.

The two arrived at the house, it had a warm tranquility resonating within it. Undyne looked in all directions, curious of the normal looking house where the great king himself resided in.

"Why don't you have a look around? I'll fix up that room." Asgore stated and let go of Undyne's hand, she nodded, and so he made his way to the room that pained him the most to be in. 

He stood in front of the door. Thoughts wavered left and right in his mind.  
 _"It's for her, you must stop living in the past. They're gone. Stop thinking about them. Think of Undyne. They're not here. It's just her now. Stop it." ___

__He shook his head and turned the handle, stepping into the room. It hadn't been touched for a while. The room's objects had a light coat of dust atop them. He hadn't been in the room for a little over two years, he usually could not endure being present in it. Yet this time he ignored the feeling and began to tidy up the room. The amount of sentiments he had to suppress as he saw every single belonging that his dead children owned was beginning to get unbearable.  
Soon enough though, he cleaned the room just enough for it to be suitable for Undyne._ _

__"Undyne, may you come here please?" Asgore stuck his head out of the room and called out._ _

__"Coming!!!" Undyne bellowed loudly in response. She ran down the hall on her short legs and stopped in front of the room._ _

__"This will be your temporary room, I do hope it suits your liking.."_ _

__"Woah! I've never had my own room before!" Without a hint of hesitation, she waltzed right in and began to survey every part of the room. Many of it's qualities were entirely new to her, justifying her heaping amount of curiosity. After her quick inspection of the area, she made her way back to Asgore with a tilted head.  
"Why are there two beds though??"_ _

__Asgore's face fell slightly, he smiled an awkward and polite smile, making up an excuse. "Well, there just happens to be an extra... it'd be a shame to waste it."_ _

__Undyne thought of the logic for a second, then nodded in agreement. "Yeah! Wasting is bad!" She giggled and ran a lap around the room once again, her wide eyes captivated by everything._ _

__"I'll go make dinner in the mean time... What do you like to eat?"_ _

__Undyne stopped on one of the beds and put a finger on her chin. "Uh....."_ _

__After a few seconds, Asgore realized that this girl may have not ever had an actual home cooked meal in her lifetime. "Eh... I'll just make you the best things I can..."  
Undyne nodded in response and watched him walk out of the room._ _

__After a good while of looking at everything in the room, Undyne decided to explore the other part of the house. She made her way down the corridor and spotted a room with a sign on it, she walked over and tilted her head, attempting to make out the words on the sign. The first letters where the same as her name's, "Und....". The rest was gibberish to her, since the only thing she could read was her own name. When she attempted to turn the door's handle, it did not work. So she proceeded on to Asgore's room.  
The first thing that caught her eye was the pot of golden flowers resting on the desk. They were so vibrant in a house that seemed somewhat glum. _ _

__She gasped in awe at the size of the bed, and instantly flopped onto it, she became very fond of how soft it was, and enjoyed the sensation of her body sinking into the cushions. With a giggle, she hopped onto the bed one last time, then jumped off with a sense of satisfaction._ _

__She exited his room and went on to the living room, which didn't interest her all that much, what really intrigued her was the wonderful smell emitting from the kitchen. She quietly peaked into it and watched the one and only king humming a sweet tune and cooking something that smelled lovely to her._ _

__"What's that?!" She cheerfully asked, waltzing into the kitchen. Asgore glanced down at her, a smile automatically made it's way onto his face, she was just awfully adorable to him._ _

__"Mashed potatoes, peas, and chicken. I hope you'll enjoy it."_ _

__Undyne nodded in response, studying the way he cooked the food with fire magic._ _

__"Wait!! Fire magic isn't just for fighting?!" She questioned in a confused disposition._ _

__"Why, of course not, it can be used for many things, heating things up, cooking, and such." He replied with a gentle wave of his ignited hand._ _

__"That's so cool! I didn't even know that!" Undyne smiled widely with excitement. Asgore admired her adorable, toothy grin._ _

__"It's just about done, so go take a seat at the table, alright?" He motioned towards the dining table._ _

__Undyne nodded with enthusiasm and skipped to the table, sitting in one of the chairs. She sat on her knees, since she was quite small, she wanted to feel taller._ _

__"Order up!" He exclaimed and set the food in front of her. Undyne looked at it in awe, she had never had such a good looking and hot meal before, she almost felt bad when biting into it. Those feelings subsided when she tasted it though, she adored it and finished eating pretty quickly._ _

__"I'll take that as a positive reaction... I'm not the most amazing cook-"_ _

__"Heck YEAH you are! That was the most amazing-est thing I've ever tasted in my whole life!" She stood in her seat, almost jumping up and down in it.  
Asgore let out a hearty chuckle and placed his hand on her shoulder, gently lowering her back into a seated position. "I'm very glad you think so... There's something else I'd like to make for you, something that I am actually am good at."_ _

__"Ooooh! Yeah yeah! I want it!"_ _

__"You don't even know what it is ye—"_ _

__"Make it!! Go make it! C'mon! Pretty please!!" She exclaimed directly, showing no shame or shyness._ _

__Asgore smiled at her with amusement and proceeded to he kitchen, whipping up his famous Golden Flower Tea in a tea pot. Once he finished, he grabbed two tea cups and returned to the table, setting the items down.  
"A hot cup of tea is very relaxing, and it's good for you.." He told her as he poured the tea into the cup. Undyne watched with wide eyes, the smell of the tea amazed her. Asgore handed her the cup with a polite smile. "It's hot, so be careful."_ _

__Undyne nodded a little as she pulled the cup closer to her, she studied the golden-brown liquid with curious eyes. Once she decided it cooled down enough, she brought the cup to her lips and took a sip. With a small and amazed gasp, she downed the cup quite quickly and clasped her hands together. "That tasted so super AMAZING!!!" She practically shouted.  
Asgore was surprised she hadn't broken a glass with her shouting by now. In all honesty, he didn't really mind the shouting. The castle was usually dead silent, so some extra noise, that one of a child, truly fixed the ambiance._ _

__"I'm very happy you enjoyed it!" He smiled once again, trying to remember the last time he smiled this much in the span of a few hours._ _

__Undyne erupted into a rather quiet short giggle, not actually jumping up and down this time. Asgore wondered if she had begun to become tired.  
"Well Undyne, it is getting late. Let me get you to bed—"_ _

__"No! I don't wanna sleep yet! I'm not tired!" She grumpily exclaimed, crossing her arms._ _

__"That's a shame... I was sure you wanted to try out your new comfy bed..." He teased and waved his hand dismissively. "Truly a shame."_ _

__Undyne processed this for a moment, she remembered how soft Asgore's bed had been, if her's was any softer, she'd be missing quite the opportunity. She gasped at her own thought, standing up in her seat and jumping onto the ground. "You're right! I'll go!" She ran down the hallway, entering the children's room swiftly.  
Asgore trailed behind her at a slower pace, he shook his head with an amused smile at how easily convinced she was, he always found it amazing when children were mesmerized by the smallest things. He entered the room to see the young girl sitting under the blankets already._ _

__"Asgore!! It's soooo comfy! It's so soft! Feel it!"_ _

__Asgore gave the blankets a pat and nodded. "I agree, they're wonderful for sleeping!"_ _

__"Do I have to sleep?" She groaned in annoyance._ _

__"Do you want to train?"_ _

__"Yes!!!" She slammed her hands on the mattress._ _

__"Of course... Then you must sleep, sleep is very important to your health, it can make you stronger and taller." He softly spoke._ _

__"Stronger and taller? Like you? You must have slept a bajillion times then! You're like a giant!"_ _

__Asgore laughed a little at her children's logic. "Most definitely. I'm sure it'll help you too, so get to it!"_ _

__Undyne nodded and laid down properly, appreciating the pillow's soft leverage. "Um... Goodnight, Asgore-"_ _

__"Goodnight Undyne, sleep well." He began to walk out, until she spoke again._ _

__"And uh-! Thank you- for this stuff-"_ _

__"Of course... anything you need, just give me a holler, you're good at that, yeah?"_ _

__"Hahah! Yeah!!"_ _

__He walked out of the room and closed her door, his back leaned on the wall and his head was tilted to the side, so his horns wouldn't hit the wall. A warm and very much real smile spread across his face. He absolutely loved having someone to care for now. He would protect her from all danger, he would make her the best fighter, so that nothing got in her way._ _

__He was not going to make the same mistake again._ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, by the way, ideas are always, ALWAYS welcome! If there's something YOU wanna see happen, please do comment on it below.


	4. Memories and Melodies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asgore is constantly seeing striking parallels and resemblance between Undyne and his own children, it isn't having a good effect on him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if this chapter is kind of all over the place, I didn't sleep much so I've been bleh ^^'

It had been almost two weeks since Undyne began staying at the king's household.  
She was... unique, to say the least. She made the house very lively and loud. Undyne was extremely hyperactive, but had a good heart. Determination fueled her every decision, and that was admirable. That's what Asgore saw, at least.

There was something about her though, something about her that consistently reminded him of his dear children. Sometimes her actions paralleled, giving Asgore intense flashbacks he didn't want. It made him step away from time to time, simply telling Undyne he had to do something very quickly, like check if the oven was still on, or see if a royal guard needed him. He made up many excuses, not wanting her to think it was her fault.

She was unintentionally hurting him, it wasn't like Asgore was blaming her for that, he was simply getting fed up with the hallucinations and flashbacks. They hurt his head and kept him up at night, thinking of every thing he didn't want to think of.

Undyne was also a wonderful distraction though, Asgore found out she loved telling make-believe stories of herself as a hero, saving monsters, going on adventures, and serving justice. The two would often reenact the scenes she set together, and make their own as well.   
...Asriel and Chara once did the same, Asgore thought.

Undyne also seemed to grow fond of Asgore's attire, so she'd often tie a blanket around her shoulders and ran around with it, pretending it was a cape.   
...Asgore was reminded of how Asriel did that occasionally.

But with every parallel and flashback, one at a time, they seemed to become more and more bearable. They didn't bother Asgore much anymore. He almost felt... happy, that he had them. They became more like good memories.

Who knew that all he needed to begin his stage of acceptance, was a silly little girl?

But right now, it was late into the night, just about 2AM. The king slouched at the dining table, his face buried into his gloved paws. It was one of those days, one of those days where the burden of holding a kingdom and a horrible promise took over his emotions, especially when thoughts of his children began to make their way into his head. He thought he could take the flashbacks, he was sure it was okay now. But it wasn't, it was too much, and emotion had overcome him on this late night.  
He stood and began to pace around the dark living room and kitchen. He tried so much to forget about it, ignore it, stop thinking of it, but the more he tried, the more it engulfed every corner of his mind.

It took over his mind so much, he barely watched where he was going. So much so, his shoulder hit the rack where he kept his garden supplies, causing them all to collapse onto the ground with extremely disrupting crashing sounds. He became awfully startled from the sudden noise and jumped to the side, then calmed down when he realized it was nothing harmful.

Hoping it didn't wake Undyne up, he slowly picked them all up and returned them to their rightful place. To prevent a situation like that from happening again, he sat back at the dining table and simply laid his head into crossed arms. Tears welled at the corners of his eyes, as strong of a king he seemed to be, he was so emotionally weak. He was so sensitive. He was horrible.   
At least that's what he thought.

"Asgore?" A familiar delicate voice spoke from the other end of the room.

Asgore rose his head to look at the young girl, she wore a night gown that was actually a loose shirt that reached her knees.   
He assumed there was no way Undyne could remotely see his tears in the dim room. 

"Undyne... Why are you awake at such an hour?" He questioned. "Did you have a nightmare? Do you need another blanket?" He began with his questions, but Undyne cut him off.

"There was a loud noise, so I came to check if you needed to be saved- I guess not though..."

"Oh dear, I greatly apologize for that disruption- I was a little clumsy..." He smiled nervously, unsure if the smile was even visible in the darkness.

"Well... Why were you sitting at the table like that?" She questioned.

"I was tired... Now, you must return to bed, sleep is very important for growing girls like you..."

"Why didn't you go to bed if you were tired?" She asked, ignoring his statements.

"No matter..." He replied somewhat anxiously, shifting in his seat. Undyne promptly walked over and automatically climbed into his lap, she loved sitting there, it made her feel safe, plus, it was the best spot to fall asleep to her.

She looked up at the king's facial expression and noticed a strange glimmer. It was light from a lamp that was on in the kitchen, the light was reflecting onto his tears, causing them to be awfully visible.

"...Are you... crying?"   
She was nervous asking such a question, since he was the mighty and strong ruler of the underground. Surely he wouldn't cry, would he?

Asgore dreaded that question's arrival, he wasn't sure how to respond. As much as he wanted to act like the strong guardian he was meant to be, he simultaneously wanted her to know that even the strongest could not be powerful all the time.  
"...A little, yeah."

Undyne's eyes widened at the unexpected answer. "Grown ups cry-?"

Asgore looked down at her with a small amused smile. "Of course they can, it doesn't matter how old or strong someone is... Everyone cries. It's healthy to certain extents."

"So you were crying because... it's healthy?" She curiously asked.

Asgore paused for a second, figuring that the whole story of his children would place a bad mood in the house, mentioning his horrible promise would only worsen his image, and whining about running a kingdom while being so emotionally drained would just place a burden on her that she didn't need. Not from him, or at all. So he decided to agree with her theory, besides, she would probably be leaving to a better place soon.

"Precisely." He calmly answered her with a soft smile.

"Oohh...! That makes sense...." She smiled a little. "It's good you're being healthy then!" 

"Ah... Yes, indeed. Now then," He wipes his remaining tears away. "Let's get you to bed. You should not be awake at such an hour. And once again, I apologize for waking you up." He gently lifted her resting figure and cradled it gently, enjoying the feeling of her petite body in his arms.  
Undyne's head simply laid back, she rested it on his chest, beginning to drift off. Asgore loved when children were sleepy, they babbled nonsense and acted with such precious innocence. 

He gently laid her upon the bed, covering her with a blanket.  
"But I don't wanna sleep yet..." She whined.

"Undyne, dear, it is very late, you must."

"Can you sing me a lullaby?" 

The request made Asgore pause for a moment, the last time he had sung a lullaby was to calm the human with a soul as green as the clovers that grew on the surface. It was a dark memory. He used a lullaby to calm the child, since she began crying out of fear. He could not bear the thought that her last living moments would be her, paralyzed with unspeakable fear. So he had begun to sing a berceuse to sooth her terror, she calmed down, and Asgore believed that she thought he would spare her. Oh lord, how he wanted to. But he simply couldn't. He murdered that child, she was so sweet, so kind. And she was gone for good.

"Asgore?" Undyne's voice cut in through his numerous remorseful thoughts, he had zoned out.

"My apologies, a lullaby, yeah?"

"Yesss..." She mumbled, waiting for the song impatiently.

Asgore chuckled a little and took a seat at the side of the bed, clearing his voice gently.

"The sky is dark and the hills are white   
As the storm-king speeds from the north to-night,   
And this is the song the storm-king sings,   
As over the world his cloak he flings:   
"Sleep, sleep, little one, sleep;"   
He rustles his wings and gruffly sings:   
"Sleep, little one, sleep." 

On yonder mountain-side a vine   
Clings at the foot of a mother pine;   
The tree bends over the trembling thing,   
And only the vine can hear her sing:   
"Sleep, sleep, little one, sleep;   
What shall you fear when I am here?   
Sleep, little one, sleep." 

Though there was more to the lullaby, Undyne had almost instantly fallen asleep after the first stanza. Asgore smiled warmly at the sight of her peaceful slumber, he exited the room and went to his own, where he laid on his bed and thought.

What had he gotten himself into? He agreed to take care of the little girl until some records on her were found so she could rightfully be put in a place she belonged, but Asgore realized that when she would leave, he'd feel empty once more. He had let himself get too attached to her.  
He shook his head at himself, she deserved to be with someone better than the pitiful murderer he was. She would forget about his care, anyways, and she would find out all the sins he had committed, even though he and the underground had two different definitions of his actions.

He sighed and shut his mind down for the night, humming and mumbling himself a lullaby as well.

"The sea creeps to pillage,   
He leaps on his prey;   
A child of the village   
Was murdered today.

He came up to meet her  
In a smooth purple cloak,   
He choked her and beat her  
to death, for a joke..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The lullabies in this chapter were "Norse Lullaby " by Eugene Field and "Sea Lullaby" by Elinor Morton Wylie, I changed the lyrics of the second one a bit so it'd fit Asgore more.


	5. Connecting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asgore's search for a good home for Undyne continues, through all the encouragement and reassuring words, the two don't seem to realize that the perfect home had already been found.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, this is a bit of a shorter chapter TvT The next one will most definitely be longer though.

There was nothing, somehow, absolutely no records on this child. Something about that disturbed the king to an extent, many signs of her "sudden appearance" pointed to the possibility that she was simply abandoned, thrown away. Asgore hated such a thought, who would throw away their own child like that? No child deserves such a horrid action conveyed on them.   
The king was glad she had fallen into his care.

And god forbid, he didn't even want to know what he'd do if he found out who had abandoned this sweet angel. She certainly wouldn't be returning into their custody, and they would receive a very stern talking to from the king himself.

Not anyone else he approached on the situation seemed to care much, unfortunately.

Not one monster in the underground, especially those who were familiar with Undyne's antics, was necessarily excited about adopting, or even fostering her. It had been a month by now, yet it seemed like the only place she seemed to fit was in the castle. 

He had spoken to Gerson, who seemed to be the only one who completely agreed with Asgore's view of Undyne. Since they were the only two to get to truly know her better, they just believed it was petty misjudgment on behalf of the other monsters.

Asgore sat at the dining table, frustrated, he was speaking to a monster who worked with the youth of the underground on the home phone.

"There was no one? Nothing? Absolute blasphemy... I apologize for having you do all that work, searching for nothing. Thank you very much anyways."   
He sighed a long sigh and dropped the receiver back into it's place.

"Asgore?" A small and very much familiar voice now almost mumbled.

"Hm? Oh...! Hello there Undyne. Training is soon, I know... Would you like to go wait in the garden until I finish up with this work here?"

"Were those things about me?" Her voice had an unusually demoralized tone.

Asgore's face fell into grief-stricken silence. The fact that she was able to deduce that the conversation focused on her simply left him somewhat heartbroken. She did not deserve to even think such things. Yet she knew the truth this time- Perhaps she wasn't as gullible as she appeared. -and Asgore saw no reason to lie to her about such a topic, knowing it would cause problems in the future.

"...I'm sorry, we cannot find anything about you dear, nor is anyone interested in caring for you yet.. But we will keep trying, alright? The monsters of the Children's Protection Facility never give up..!"

Undyne kept a sorrowful look on her face. "What if nobody ever wants me though? Then I'll never ever have a home..."

Asgore's heart broke a little more inside, loathing these words that came out of this marvelous and previously mistreated child's mouth. He could not accept such negative thoughts from such a determined soul. It was much too unnatural for her.

"No. No, no. Look at me..." He sat on his knees to lower himself to her height, and looked into her eyes as he held her arm with warmth and care. "I will make you this promise, alright? Listen. I promise that we will find you the perfect home, and the people that reside within it will love you and care for you with all their heart, just like you deserve. Okay?"

"Do you really think so?" She questioned with apprehension, the hope began to return to her wide eyes. 

"I know so, it is a promise. We won't rest until it is fulfilled, but in the mean time, do not think such things." 

"...Okay...! I won't! I'll be uh- really um..." She paused, thinking of the appropriate word to insert into her sentence.

"Determined. You certainly are..."

"De-ter-mined-? What's that mean?"

He chuckled softly. "Some one who is determined, like you for example, is someone who never gives up, someone who makes firm decisions that they refuse to change." He set a hand on her shoulder gently and smiled. "It is a wonderful trait to have."

Undyne gasped loudly with large sparkling eyes, Asgore laughed a little and turned back to his unfinished work, returning to finishing it up.

She stood and watched him for a couple of seconds, Asgore was partly surprised that she could stay as quiet as she was at the moment. Though quickly enough, she grew bored. 

"Oh Undyne, why don't you go on ahead to the garden like I said? I'll be there in just a few minutes..." Asgore spoke with a gentle tone.

She agreed and nodded her head rapidly at him. Giving a playful little bow, she proceeded to skip to the throne room, thinking about this wonderful man who's care she had fallen into. She wondered what his childhood and parents were like, she wondered if they were anything like hers. It was so hard to imagine that this huge, kind monster was once a child such as herself.

Undyne arrived at the garden and hopped onto the throne, she dangled her legs and held out her hands. Attempting to concentrate on the air in front of her, with great effort and extra determination strewn from Asgore's kind words, she managed to summon one of her infamous spears of a moderate reputation.  
"Yes!!! I did it all by myself!" She exclaimed to no one in particular.  
She decided to surprise the king by attempting to tackle him, knowing this time she would prevail after all her failed attempts from previous training sessions.

She swiftly ran to the side of the entrance, awaiting her approaching prey. Large padded footsteps were heard nearing her location. She saw the large shadow his figure emitted, and when the time came, she pounced!

Only to land into the flowers, as Asgore had dodged the tackle attempt, just like the many times before.

"What?!?! I almost had you that time!" She exclaimed loudly in annoyance.

Asgore let out a hearty chuckle and lifted her up, putting her back on her feet. "You truly did almost have me that time, I'm sure if you continue practicing you'll get me one day." He enunciated with a gentle tone.

"You bet I will!! I'm gonna kick your butt!"

"Golly, I can't wait!" He replied with a cheeky smile, causing Undyne to laugh a little.

She ran up back to him, waving her spear around. "Look look!! I summoned it on command, all by myself!!!" She jumped up and down with excitement.

"Oh, Undyne..! That's fantastic! See? You are very much improving, and it has only been 3 months since we began training." He smiled, then eying the spear with concern. "Don't go waving that thing around now-"

She looked at the spear, letting her hand with it fall to her side. "Right- Anyways!! Training! Now now now!!!" She rocked back and forth on her heels.

Asgore smiled at her enthusiasm and walked to the other side of the throne room, initiating the training session.


	6. Speaking of Souls...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Undyne encounters a strange creature in a dream. They have a little chat.

She stood in the middle of what looked like a village. The sky was a dim blue due to the amount of grey clouds up there, the clouds certainly were mesmerizing. They captivated Undyne very much, she had never seen such a thing.

But she was not alone. Another figure stood right near her, around the same height as her. She was almost too afraid to look, but telling herself that heroes were not supposed to be afraid encouraged her. So she looked.

There stood a child, a child just a little older than she. Their skin was pale, their cheeks resonated with pink and light freckles. A lime green striped sweater rested on their figure, their hair was a mocha-brown color. 

Undyne had never seen such a strange, but at the same time normal, looking creature. She slowly approached them, assuming they were harmless, as they did not attack her.

"Uhm... Hi there..." She pronounced a little quietly with the wave of a hand.

The creature looked at her, their head was lowered slightly, so Undyne could not fully see their face, much of it was covered by their bangs. Only their mouth and lower cheeks were really visible.

"Can you talk?" Undyne instantly questioned the creature as soon as she got a little closer than before.

They nodded promptly.

Undyne's head tilted a little, her eyes flew away from the figure and looked around the village some more.  
"Hey, I know those flowers! Asgore has them in his garden!" She suddenly exclaimed, pointing to a patch of the golden burnished flora and glancing at the creature. They nodded.

"What is this place anyways? A village? Why does the top part look so weird?" She questioned as she glanced up at the sky.

The creature nodded yet again, then spoke with a soft and delicate voice. "This was once my home. This is a village on the surface world."

Undyne paused for a moment, then gasped. "The surface?! This is the surface?! Whoa!!" Her eyes grew wide as they traveled along the village's houses, the nature, and the clouds. It all looked so new and odd, the underground had similar things to what the surface world had. Like the trees and vegetation, Undyne saw a lot of those in Snowdin. The clouds on the other hand were new and different to her. There were no such things down there, as the sky was obviously not visible from the underground.  
"Where are the people? Humans live here, right?"

"...Yes, they once did I suppose."

"Well... Where are they?" She asked with a curious tone, hoping to see her first human ever. It was a goal of hers.

"Not here. This isn't the real village, just a projection from my own memory. I'm stuck in between two worlds, unable to get out." They looked down at their feet, shuffling them a little.

"Whoa— Really-? How does that work? Can I help you??"

"I highly doubt it."

"Can I try? Maybe we can figure something out together!" Undyne flashed her best smile at them.

They glanced up at her, now looking straight at her, so Undyne could finally see their face properly.  
"...You sure are a determined pathetic little thing, aren't you? If you were human your soul trait would definitely be of determination. I can tell by your aura."

"Soul trait? Aura? Human? ...Wait, pathetic?!"

The creature slowly circled Undyne, studying her. "A soul trait is the human's main trait, a part of their personality that represents them the most, so it reflects onto their soul. For example," They held out their hand, a red soul appeared just above it. "My main trait is determination, so my soul is red."

Undyne's eyes scanned the soul with bewilderment at such information. 

The creature's free hand motioned towards Undyne, her own soul appeared before them. "Though you all see your souls as regular old monster souls, each and every one of you has an aura that parallels human soul traits." They pointed at Undyne's soul, and a red aura appeared, surrounding the white soul.  
"You see? It matches the color of my soul. So both of our main traits are determination."

"Whoa-! That's so cool, I didn't know that!" Undyne hopped a little with excitement.

"Seriously? Don't you guys learn soul theory in school?" 

"Um... I don't go to school-" She proceeded to avoid the subject. "Wait, so if you have that kind of soul," She motioned to the crimson soul. "-you're a human!?"

The clouds in the sky abruptly darkened to a dark grey, thunder rumbled loudly, startling Undyne.

 **"No."**  
They replied with a sudden cold and harsh tone.

"But you said—"

**"I am nothing like those monsters. Humans are the most horrible creatures to exist."**

"Really? They're... that bad? I mean, I knew they sucked. But-" 

The storm clouds calmed down, and their color faded back to a simple grey.

"...Yeah. They're horrible. I don't want to speak of them." They promptly stated, crossing their arms.

"Oh uh... okay..." Undyne mumbled, looking back at them slightly.

"Undyne."

"Yeah-? Wait, you know my name?" She tilted her head slightly.

"Yes. I've heard it. I watch you sometimes." They let their arms fall back to their side, the village began to disappear.  
"But Undyne. Don't tell Asgore about this."

And everything slowly faded to black. The rest of her slumber was dreamless.

When she awoke, she took a good look at her surroundings. She was back in the underground, in her room. Hearing Asgore's snoring from the other room, she knew he was still asleep, so she got out of bed and sat on the floor as she thought of her dream. As she thought, she patrolled around the room, looking at some of the dusty toys, they didn't interest her.  
She looked in the closet, there was just clothing in there. Though there was a sweater that's color caught her eye, she gently tugged the fabric out and unfolded it. Her face went cold for a few seconds. 

This sweater was the exact same one that the creature wore in her dream. Lime green with a single yellow stripe.

She also found it unfortunate that she didn't ask the creature for it's name, as now all she could call it was "the creature".

She had heard of types of dreams that told the future, so she wondered if it was just showing that she'd find this certain sweater and learn the specific soul trait lesson from Asgore sometime in the future. Who knew? 

Asgore's snoring stopped a minute ago, Undyne heard his footsteps walk past her door, presumably headed for the kitchen. She smiled at the thought of breakfast and hot tea.  
She decided to get dressed, throwing on a shirt and her favorite pair of overalls. Taking another glance at the sweater, she went ahead and put it on too.

After doing so, she skipped out of the room and advanced to the dining room. Asgore was sitting at the table, sipping on a cup of tea with his eyes skimming through a newspaper. Not that the underground had much news.

"Good morning!!!" Undyne exclaimed and hopped onto a chair beside him.

Asgore looked towards her, his face drained for a second when his eyes landed on the sweater she wore. He choked on his tea for a second, as he coughed and regained himself, it had caused the cup in his hand to wobble and spill a bit on the newspaper he had been reading.  
"O-Oh golly- I sure am clumsy, aren't I?"

"Are you okay??" Undyne questioned him with a concerned tone.

"Of course, of course-" He replied as he wiped his mouth with a tissue, proceeding to throw the wet newspaper into the waste basket. "My apologies, just a slip of the hand-" He poured himself another cup of tea, then poured one for Undyne as well. "Here you go.."

Undyne smiled and dragged the cup over to herself, taking a sip. "Mm! Yummy! Thank you!"

Asgore smiled at her and nodded in response, trying to stop himself from eying the sweater.  
"...I.. like your sweater... You found it in the closet, yeah? It looks nice on you." Was all he dared to say.

"Thanks! I like the colors!" She simply replied without a bat of the eye.

Asgore sighed, looking down at his cup of tea anxiously. That sweater looked exactly like the one that his child wore before they passed.

"Um... Hey Asgore, I have a question-"

"Hm? What is it?"

"So uh... When I was walking around the other day, I heard some monsters talking about souls uh... "paralleling"- I think that was the word- so uh, paralleling human souls- And something about auras- Is that stuff true?" 

Asgore's head rose to look at her, he set his tea down and nodded. "Yes, monster souls share the same traits as human souls. It's just that the human soul's trait is the center of their soul, it is what represents them."

"And... How do you know what "aura" a monster has?" She questioned with the tilt of the head. 

"You cannot do that anymore. There used to be a spell specifically for that, but it is no longer in use since the general use of spells has reduced greatly."

"Oh... Do you know what your aura-trait-thingy is?" She asked curiously.

"Patience, apparently..."

"Oh! Oh! What about Gerson's??" 

Asgore chuckled a little. "Bravery, unsurprisingly."

"Awesome!" Undyne exclaimed with excitement. She calmed herself a bit, looking down, then looking back at him. "Well, uh, I had a dream last night. In my dream I saw my aura- it was red..."

Asgore's head tilted to the side. This was the first time he have ever heard of a case like this, seeing one's aura in a dream. "Fascinating... Determination." He chuckled. "Unsurprising..."

"Is that good???"

"Of course it's good..! It's wonderful..."

"Do you think that it was real? That I really saw my own aura in a dream or..?" 

"I don't see any proof that it's not real. Besides, determination is a specific trait, and certainly one that you have and express a lot. I wouldn't be surprised at all if it truly was real." He answered truthfully.

Undyne smiled, feeling a little special.

"Well now, let's focus on that later, there's another matter I would like to discuss with you..."


	7. Anxious Of Outcomes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Undyne somewhat expresses her fear of going to a school. Asgore fears becoming something didn't want.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorryyyy, this is a short one, but the next chapter should be longer-

"Whaddaya wanna talk about??" Undyne promptly questioned with a tilt of the head.

Asgore shuffled a little in his seat, turning his body to face her more. "Ah... Well... You see, I've figured that you may be staying here for a while, so I believe that it's about time that we enrolled you into the underground's school."

"...S-School-? Why-?" She anxiously asked, her fins lowered.

"Well- To get you proper education of course- It is currently the middle of the school year, so it won't happen too quickly, but I'll talk to some monsters in the education system and they shall do what they can..." He smiled warmly and reassuringly. "I'll teach you some basics until you get into the school though..."

The thought of only Asgore schooling her calmed Undyne a little, but the thought of actually being taught by a stranger in a classroom full of other strangers simply wasn't appealing to her.

"Why are you so hesitant of being in the public school, dear? It is very fun, many students enjoy learning there..."

"But I don't know them. I don't know anyone there." She stated as she glanced downwards.

"Oh Undyne... No one starts out by knowing everyone, that simply isn't how it works... You are loud and confident, you will make friends easily, I'm sure many would like you...!" He reassured her, his hand went to her chin, he lifted her head so she looked towards him. "And if they don't, we beat them up."

Undyne laughed and held his fingers in her palms. "Really?!"

Asgore chuckled and shook his head. "Nah... Absolutely not.. Remember, fighting is strictly for self-defense only, okay?"

She groaned in annoyance but giggled slightly. "Okay, okay! So what are YOU gonna teach me to do?"

"Well, I certainly believe that the upmost important thing I teach you is to read and write."

"Oh, right... That-" She answered in a not thrilled tone. She was not fond of having to sit in one place and focus one something so boring like words.

"I know it may be a little hard to learn at first, but do trust me, it will get easier."

"You talk like Gerson! Do all grown ups say things like that?!"

Asgore smiled in amusement, nodding his head slightly. "Many do, but it's simply because it's true. Me and Gerson wouldn't lie, would we now?"

"What?! No way! Of course not!"

"Exactly."

"But... You're still gonna teach me fighting and piano, right?!" She asked with a desperate and somewhat fearful tone.

"Why of course, we'll make a new schedule and organize every lesson, each to a different day of the week."

"That sounds good!" She said with an excited tone, though it slowly deteriorated at the thought of actually having studies and school work in the near future.

"Oh Undyne, do not look so hopeless... It really isn't too bad..."

"What of the kids there are mean to me and don't like me?!" Her worried tone rose.

Asgore paused for a second, he didn't quite set his mind on THAT. His hand gently went to the side of her arm and rubbed it in a comforting manner. "Undyne... If god forbid, someone there is unkind to you, or hurts you... Never hesitate to tell a teacher. And even if you don't tell anyone at school, you must always tell me. Okay?"

Undyne nodded at the second part without any hesitation. It was quite difficult for her to gain this kind of trust towards anyone, so when this bond with Asgore began, she cherished it with her heart and soul, she hoped he did the same. 

"Can I go play in Waterfall, please?!"

"Of course, dear..." He let go of her arm with a gentle smile, hoping she'd let some of that energy out. Asgore had figured out that when she didn't have the time in the day to run, train, or do physical activities in general, it made her awfully cranky, storing all that energy in her. In all honesty, he was impressed at how much energy she really had, even after letting some out.

"Thank you!!!" She squealed excitedly, jumping off her chair and preparing to dash towards the exit. 

"Ah, but Undyne- Hold on just a second..." He used his finger to motion at her for her to near him.

She let out an annoyed groan and stomped over to him. "Whaaaat?"

"Remember, be careful..." He started, then gently turned Undyne's back to him and pulled out her hair tie. "If something happens, go to Gerson when you're in Waterfall, he'll be closer..." He gently brushed her hair, undoing a few tangles with the brush.

Undyne hissed under her breath at how uncomfortable the untangling was. Asgore gently mumbled an apology.

"Yeah, I know that stuff, Asgore-"

"And don't take anything unsafe from a stranger, try not to get into a fight, always grab an umbrella where there is rain, don't run where there are puddles—"

"Asgore, I know already!" She said it loud and clear, and very much annoyed, somewhat mad as well.

As the final tangle was removed, Asgore tied her hair back up, into a tight bun.   
"...Of course you do... All kids should know such things..."

"Yeah!" She exclaimed, turning to face him. "So you don't need to remind me!"

"Very well... One more thing though."

"Ugh- What—"

"Have fun." Asgore replied with a cheeky smile.

"Oh right- well duh! Waterfall is a cool and fun place! So I'll definitely have fun! Bye bye! See you later!" She announced cheerfully, waltzing out of the house.

And so it was quiet and empty once more. Asgore did not like it, but he knew that keeping her imprisoned in the castle would be a very wrong thing to do, she needed to run around and explore her surroundings.

He was trying everything in his power to give her freedom, but also protection. He feared that he would become an overprotective father as time went by.

He had grown close to this child, and would never let anything happen to her. 

He could not lose another.


	8. Challenged Slumber

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Undyne gives Asgore a challenge to avoid thinking of the one she must face the next day.

They rested in the flowers with a book and a pot of tea, including two cups of it. Undyne's reading lessons had been going better than expected, especially after she was convinced that it was something truly useful and even quite interesting.

The two often practiced with children's adventure books, so that the content being read kept Undyne intrigued enough to want to continue on learning.

They finished their chapter for the day, Undyne hopped up with an exhilarated giggle. "I can't wait to see what happens next!!"

"Well, you know you can always continue reading the story on your own, I'm not stopping you..." Asgore stood as well, gathering the tea set onto a tray.

"No!!! It's- More fun reading with you- You make the best funny voices!"

Asgore chuckled and ruffled her hair with his free hand, shifting his tone to make his voice sound amusing, as he did when they read. "You like my voices? This one?"  
His smile widened when he heard Undyne's laugh.

"Well now, come along dear. It is getting a tad late, let's clean up and head off to bed."

"But Asgore! It's early! I don't wanna sleep yet!" She pouted and held the book to her chest.

"Perhaps, yes, but it is your first day of school tomorrow, remember? You really should be well rested so you can be focused and make a good impression tomorrow..."

She puffed her cheeks outwards as her yellow tinted eyes flew to the ground beneath her. "I mean... yeah, I guess." She mumbled and sighed, beginning to drag her feet to the house.

Asgore frowned, unsure of what else he could say to cheer her up.  
"Oh dear, do not look so glum... Everything will be just alright."

"Yeah, I know. You said that already..."

He sighed, knowing well that he had repeated the statement much too often.

"Go and put the book away, then get ready for bed. Alright?"

"Okayyy.." She groaned and ran off to her room.

Asgore sighed once more, he took the tray in his hands to the kitchen, washing the utensils as he hummed a gentle tune. Undyne returned, messy hair, pajamas, and all. She stood alongside Asgore, leaning her chin on the counter as she listening to his humming. She always thought it was relaxing.

"There we are..." The king set the last cleansed dish aside. "Now, time to take care of this little sea monster."

Undyne cracked a smile and nodded. "Yeah! Roar!"

Asgore chuckled and kneeled down to her. "Well, what does this little sea monster suggest we do?"

"Not sleep!"

"Ah, well, I can't allow that, unfortunately." He smiled and lifted her up. She squeaked a little in excitement, and wrapped her arms around his neck to hold on.  
Asgore took her to her room, and dropped her onto the bed.

Undyne sat up as soon as she hit the soft cushion. "Hah! It'll take more than that to make me go to sleep!"

"Oh my, is this a challenge?" Asgore smirked slightly, kneeling down to the side of her bed.

"Yeah! If you make me go to sleep, you win! And if I don't sleep, I win! Then I get a looooong training session as a prize!" She exclaimed in excitement.

Asgore chuckled and nodded. "Very well. Challenged accepted, but if I win, what is my prize?"

"Umm...." She put a hand on her chin and thought for a moment. "If you win— Which you won't —then I'll do whatever you want me to!"

Asgore snickered at the nonspecific prize, nodding. "Alright then, deal."  
They shook on it, then both laughed a little.

"So! What's your first trial?!" Undyne questioned him.

"How about a bedtime story?" Asgore leaned on his hand, smiling from ear to ear.

"Whatever you choose! It won't work though!"

"Ah, well, if it worked before it can always work again." He chuckled and stood. "Allow me to get some reinforcements."

"What?! You can't do that! You gotta do it alone!" Undyne protested with a cross face.

"But Undyne, dearest, aren't you the most powerful warrior? I'm sure even if I get a little help, you shall remain undefeated."

"Hm... You're right! Carry on!"

Asgore chuckled softly, slowly standing.  
"Thank you, dearest. Wait just a minute."  
With that, he stepped out, heading for the kitchen.

He soon returned with a cup of hot coca, to which Undyne gasped in delight.  
"Oohh! Yum! I love that!" She quickly accepted the mug Asgore held out, and took a sip.  
"It's good... But how can THIS make me sleep? I'm winning!" She smiled a triumphant grin, to which Asgore poked his tongue out. Undyne giggled, leaning back onto the pillow. "Now, what's the story?"

"So eager... Well, it starts with a knight...."

The young girl kept herself from dozing off throughout the king's story, she even managed to stay awake during the sappy ending of the story. Though she had to admit, the tea certainly had an effect. Her head and eyelids felt heavy, but she pressed through the signs of fatigue.

"Impressive, you passed the whole story... Not all survive that last part." Asgore chuckled heartily.

"Well, I AM the best warrior. Of course I got through, that was easy! Now, gimme more tea and you can continue."

Happy to know his tea was doing the trick, he nodded and gladly poured her another cup. After doing so, he rested his knees on the carpeted ground once more.

"I do actually have a song for this occasion... May I?"

"Not even a hundred lullabies would make me sleep!"

Asgore cocked his head with an amused smile. "Oh, I'll bet... It is worth a shot though, is it not?"

"True, true. Sing your lullaby then."

Asgore chuckled, nodding down at the small figure. He began to sing a quiet tune about the ocean and the rain of the surface.

Though the tune made her a little tired, Undyne became curious about the things he sang about. She had barely heard of the huge body of water on the surface, or strange droplets of water that apparently fell from the so-called sky, and not a physical ceiling, like in Waterfall.

“Can you tell me about rain on the surface? How does it work?” She questioned.

Asgore smiled at her curiosity, leaning his elbows on her bed.  
“Well... Rain falls from big dark clouds-“

“Clouds?”

“They’re- Mm... imagine.. Very big tufts of cotton candy in the sky.. Clouds look like that.” He scratched his beard, realizing that describing things others had never seen before was a difficult process.

“Whoa! The surface is so weird! How does the rain fall out of those things?”

Asgore let out an amused sigh. “Well... When it gets hot, water starts to evaporate,”

“What’s ev—“

“meaning some of the water goes up into the clouds.” He chuckled. “Be patient, I’ll finish my explanation, then you can ask questions.”

“Right-“

She attempted to silence herself as he spoke, yet she was so mesmerized by the explanations of rain and clouds, she couldn’t help the overwhelming curiosity within her.

She asked her questions, and so Asgore continued explaining the surface’s wonders of nature.

-

So much talk of the fascinating surface world tired the young girl out, at last she had fallen asleep.

Asgore sighed, rubbing the top of her hand gently. His eyes scanned her restful face with delight at his victory, he too, rested his head on the bed. His chin against the mattress, and knees still on the floor. Closing his eyes, he wallowed into peaceful slumber, holding the child’s hand.

One dreamt of pacing through a gruesome war zone, another dreamt of walking through the wonders of the surface, along with the strange young human once again.


End file.
